Hans von Seeckt

Seeckt, Hans von (häns fən zākt) [key], 1866–1936, German general. He fought in Poland, Serbia, Romania, and Turkey during World War I. In 1920 he was made chief of the Reichswehr—the German army, which was limited to 100,000 men under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. He commanded the Reichswehr until 1926 and made it an efficient nucleus capable of serving as cadre for a larger army. After the Treaty of Rapallo, Seeckt concluded (1923) a secret agreement with the USSR to obtain weapons forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles. He was (1930–32) a member of the Reichstag, representing the conservative People's party. In 1934–35 he was a military adviser to Chiang Kai-shek in China. Among his writings are The Future of the German Empire (tr. 1930) and Thoughts of a Soldier (1929, tr. 1930).